The "Presence of God"

Previous week, I preached on something “heavy” in church. By that I meant something to really ponder on, something to look deeper into. Like the Bereans, one will have to search the Scripture, discuss it and see if it is true rather than just taking everything said by the preacher behind the pulpit as truth. Preachers aren't right all the time. Here's a gist on the subject on the presence of God.

Keep in mind this Hebrew word: Paneam. It means “face to face”. Before the Fall of man at Eden, man and God were able to meet face to face. After the Fall, God removed Himself from the presence of man because in the sinful state, man cannot dwell in the presence of God (Paneam). Throughout the Old Testament, God's visited His people but not in the way He did before the Fall. His glory can be seen and His presence tangibly felt and His voice can be heard. But man still cannot “paneam” God because as God said to Moses: “ … I will let you see my glory and hear my holy name but I won't let you see my face, because anyone who sees my face will die” (Exodus 33:19-20). After this encounter, Moses physical body glowed to the extent he had to wear a veil because people couldn't look into his face. Can you imagine what would have happened had Moses stood in the presence of God? He would had imploded. God placed Moses behind a cracked rock to protect him from His presence and allowed Moses only to have a partial glimpse of Himself after He passed by Moses. Moses no doubt felt the awesome presence of God but was not allowed to be in the presence of God (paneam) lest he die.

What about us today? Can we be in the presence of God (paneam) and yet live? I don't think our physical body can take it although in spirit we are regenerated. In that sense, I believe we will not physically survive the presence of God and live. That's why God gave us His only begotten Son! That's His grace. By looking at Jesus we see God. Jesus said if we had seen Him, we would have seen the Father. If we had heard Him, we would have heard the Father. In order to know God and dwell in God's presence, we have Jesus as the Way, Truth and Life! So today as we worship and gather in the Name of Jesus to pray, we enter into the presence of God. We tangibly feel and experience God's presence but we are not seeing God face to face. We can't. Our bodies cannot take it. There will come a time we will be able to but now, in our mortal body and present condition, we have Jesus as our Mediator. When the apostle John had an encounter with God at the island of Patmos, He was caught in spirit into the presence of Jesus who was in His glorified state. John fell to the ground as though dead. Isaiah too thought he was going to die when he had his encounter with God. He had a revelation of a sinful man in the presence of the most Holy God! Unlike Moses, Isaiah and John encountered God in the spirit while Moses had a physical encounter, yet they were overwhelmed!

In my opinion, in order for us to encounter God face to face, there must be these three conditions. First of all, being born again. Secondly, a new body. This we will have when we get to heaven. Thirdly, a new name. God has a new name for us in heaven because “old things have passed away and all things have become new”. In that glorious state, we will be able to see God face to face. What God did in Eden before the Fall, God will restore then in spirit, soul and body. What's my point in sharing this? My concern for the way preachers today define the presence of God.

Preachers love to draw attention to themselves. I am not saying this as a norm. Being human, the temptation is always there. In church, there's the stage and there's the audience. People love a good performance and the star has to shine brighter in order to maintain the ambiance. This is where the preacher (if he or she is not careful) succumb. People love a hero, a star. They are willing to pay for the stage. But this is not something new. Centuries back, Paul warned in 2 Timothy 4:3: “The time is coming when people won't listen to good teaching. Instead they will look for teachers who will please them by telling only what they are itching to hear”. We need to take heed of this. Jesus is soon returning and false teachers are on the rise. My caution is: be a follower of Jesus, not a follower of preachers. God's presence is not unique only to some as some preachers would claim to have the unique ability to enter into the presence of God. I honestly think if God were to really appear, we too will cry out “woe is me for I am unclean”. How can we stand in the presence of the most high God in our present state? Yet, by the grace of God, we have been accorded the privilege of knowing Him and gracing His presence and His glory through Jesus Christ the Son of God. In Jesus we live and move and have our being. We are indeed God's offspring (Acts 17:28). Jesus is the mediator between God the Father and us and we have the wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit through whom we have been adopted as sons of God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Praise be to our God! One day we will meet God face to face. For now, we will embrace the awesome presence and glory of God in Christ Jesus our Lord, Master and Savior.

Churches have evolved through the centuries. What it is today is not quite the same as what it was originally in Acts. But that's alright. Time passes and generational change will continue as in methods and styles. It's understandable we don't do church the way it was done previously. Change is inevitable and is healthy and necessary as long as the core is not compromised. In fact, Paul said there are diversity of ministries and gifts but of the same Spirit. Churches come in all kinds of styles and sizes but as long as it is borne of the same Holy Spirit, it is alright. My only concern is doing church without the Holy Spirit but supposedly in the name of Jesus. 

Since I was a freshman in Bible College in 1979, I had been involved in the pioneering of a church in Rawang. So all in all, I have been in the ministry forty years, thirty eight of which were in Vineyard which  I pioneered. Through all these years, I have benefited so much from big churches and gifted pastors. Their training programs for pastors were a great help and inspiration So whether a church is big or small, it's still God's church. God is no greater in one church and lesser in another. God is God. As long as I am a follower of Christ, and as long as I abide by His Word, God's presences is felt no matter where I am. That's the joy of being a follower of Jesus. His love, His joy and His peace abide in me. I too hope sincerely (as I have so taught) that you too will be a follower of Jesus Christ, not a follower of a church or a preacher. God's presence is everywhere. Be faithful to God and to where He has planted you. Things may not be the way you want and it probably may not, but should a man leave his wife if his spouse is not up to his expectations? What works is faithfulness. As long as you stay on course, you too can contribute positively and grow your church in ways that glorify Jesus. After all, the purpose of the church ultimately is to proclaim the kingdom of God. God have mercy on all of us and to Him be all the glory!